1. Inflation

2. What is inflation?
A pervasive and general rise in the average price level

3. What is the Consumer Price Index?
The CPI measures the price increases of a particular basket of goods and services

4. What is the price mechanism?
The adjustment of prices in response to changing market conditions

5. Is any increase in prices inflationary?
No, some prices will always increase because of the price mechanism

6. What three roles do prices play?
convey information
give incentives
provide working capital

7. Which two categories is left out of the core inflation rate?
Food and energy

8. What is the recent history of inflation?
1946 to % annually
1948 to % annually
1969 to 1979 prices doubled
Currently

9. Why is inflation called an arbitrary tax?
Because it lessens people’s disposable income while effecting them randomly

10. Who measures inflation?
It is published monthly by the Bureau of Labor Statistics

11. What is the consumer price index (CPI)?
A measure of the cost of a fixed “market basket” of consumer goods and services

12. Does this “fixed basket” change?
As people’s tastes and preferences change, what goes into the basket will change

13. If inflation is 10% and you get a 7% raise, what has happened to your money income? real income?
Your money income has increased by 7% but your real income has decreased by 3%

14. What is the percent increase from $30,000 to $32,000?
Take the difference and divide by the original number
$2,000/$30,000 = 6.7%

15. If your income goes up from $30,000 to $32,000 and inflation is 5%, are you better or worse off?
You are better off because your real income has increased by 1.7%

16. What is the Rule of 72?
Take any incremental increase and divide into 72 - the result will tell you how long it will take the value to double

17. At 2% how long will it take for prices double?
36 years
At 10% how long will it take for prices to double?
7.2 years

18. What gives anything value?
Usefulness and level of scarcity

19. What gives a country’s currency value?
The goods and services of a country which there is a demand

20. Is there anything wrong with a slow and steady rate of inflation?
No, especially when the inflation rate is anticipated

21. How does inflation change society?
It breeds uncertainty, diminishes buying power, erodes real savings, causes unemployment, alters social traditions, and confuses the price mechanism

22. How did the inflation of the 1970’s effect society?
Fast food restaurants
Two income families
Change in family styles

23. What causes inflation?
The money supply has to increase more than goods and services increase

24. What does the foreign sector have to do with inflation?
If more money enters the country than leaves, the money supply increases

25. What is the equation of exchange?
MV = PQ

26. Money
Velocity
MV = PQ
Price
Quantity

27. What determines the price level?
MV/Q = P

28. What can lower the rate of inflation?
Decrease M, decrease V, and/or increase Q

29. Who influences our money supply?
The Federal Reserve (Fed)

30. Do government mandated price controls work?
NO, they simply alter the economic system, for example, shortages in the former Soviet Union

31. S
Surplus
Shortage D

32. Can businesses or consumers cause inflation?
Maybe for a short time, but very quickly prices will come down due to a lack of buying power

33. Who is hurt the most by inflation?
Anyone on a fixed income is hurt the most by inflation

34. Who is hurt the most and the least by inflation?
The elderly are hurt the most, young married couples are hurt the least

35. How does inflation affect lenders and borrowers?
lenders are hurt more if the inflation is unanticipated
borrowers are hurt more if the inflation is anticipated

36. The two main theories of inflation
The Demand-Pull inflation → originates from demand side of the economy
If aggregate monetary demand for domestic output exceeds the value of the full employment output at current prices, then the price level will rise (fig text book)
The Cost-Push inflation → originates from supply side of the economy
It is caused by rising cost of production independently of the excess demand in the market (fig text book)

37. What is demand-pull inflation?
A sustained rise in the price level caused by increases in aggregate demand

38. Will any increase in demand cause inflation?
No, it depends on where the aggregate demand curve falls on the aggregate supply curve

39. Aggregate Supply Curved6 d5 Q d4 d3 d2 d1

40. Is it easy to fight demand pull inflation?
Yes!
When we lower demand prices will soon drop

41. What is supply side inflation?
Inflation caused by reductions in aggregate supply

42. What is cost-push inflation?
An increase in costs leading to an increase in prices

43. Is it easy to fight cost push inflation?
When we lower demand with cost push inflation it will take longer before prices decline
No!

44. How bad was the inflation rate of the 1970s?
Inflation average 10% a year during the 1970s

45. What caused the inflation of the 1970s?
OPEC greatly increased the price of oil in the early 70s
Union bargained for higher wages greater than their increase in productivity

46. What is creeping inflation?
The slow but steady increase in prices

47. What is hyperinflation?
A very high rate of inflation

48. What is an example of hyperinflation?
In 1923 the German mark inflated from 2,000 to the dollar to 4 trillion 200 billion to the dollar

49. Concepts of Deflation, Disinflation,Reflation & Stagflation
Deflation – is a condition of falling prices on account of insufficient effective demand. Results in a continuous fall in level of economic activity & growing unemployment
Disinflation – it is a process of lowering costs & prices when they are excessively high. Brings down inflationary trend in prices without causing unemployment

50. Concepts of Deflation, Disinflation, Reflation & Stagflation
Reflation – is a moderate degree of inflation that is deliberately undertaken to relieve depression
Stagflation – a situation in which a high rate of inflation prevails simultaneously with a high rate of unemployment or stagnant economic condition. It is a combination of inflation & stagnation

51. What is deflation?
A sustained decrease in the price level

52. What is disinflation?
A reduction in the rate of inflation

53. What does interest mean?
The dollar amount paid to lenders to forgo present consumption and imposed on borrowers

54. What is interest rate?
Interest per year as a percentage of the amount loaned or lent

55. How are savers effected by inflation?
With an inflation rate of 3% and an interest rate of 3%, a saver breaks even, not considering the increase in their taxes

56. What is the nominal rate of interest?
The interest rate expressed in current dollars as a percentage of the amount loaned

57. What is the real rate of interest?
The interest rate expressed in dollars of constant purchasing power as a percentage of the amount loaned

58. How do we measure the real rate of interest?
The nominal rate of interest minus the inflation rate

59. Why does higher inflation cause higher interest rates?
Lenders have to be rewarded in real terms
Also, the Federal Reserve may raise interest rates

60. How are investors effected by inflation?
Because investors make decisions based on expectations, unanticipated inflation leads to uncertainty and a decline in investments

61. What fiscal policies would we use to bring down inflation?
Cut government spending
Raise taxes to pay debt
Relax trade restrictions
Increase productivity

62. How to protect yourself from hyper inflation?
real estate
art
gold

63. END